Price of Freedom
by moonhaku
Summary: DISCONTINUED
1. Prologue

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welcome to the sequel to **Tears of Blood**!! (If you haven't read it, I suggest you go read it now,ON THE DOUBLE!! or you'll be very confused ) I hope that you'll like this sequel better, since the first one really stunk. Have fun!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, isn't that just **_**sad**_?

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_**Prologue**_

Sometimes…the ending is the beginning…in her case this was true. Hyuuga Hinata, age 22, ninja status: Jounin, was dead.

She was beautiful, gentle and kind. Her only wish was for a peaceful death, one to be celebrated, not mourned so it wouldn't add to her village's troubles. This was what her whole life was about; someone else.

She trained so her father would be proud. She fought to save other's lives. She cried over other's misfortunes. She loved for her friend's sake. She died to bring someone home.

She died for him.

No one could remember why, because no one understood her. She was foreign territory, and even the one closest to her had trouble understanding her. Everyone thought that they knew her, but in reality no one knew the real Hinata Hyuuga. She was too plain, too common, like a tree hidden among a forest. Too often was she overlooked, and now they have no more chances to delve deeper.

Because she has finally found peace.

She knew that this day would come. She never even dreamed of living until old age, something that many people take for granted. She knew how short her life would be, and she tried to make the best of it.

Sometimes our best qualities are also our downfall.

_Love._

_Happiness._

_Hope._

She excelled in these qualities, but ultimately, they brought about her end. She loved everyone so much, everyone was like a brother or a sister to her. For their sake, she would smile and laugh. For their sake, she would be happy and run about. For their sake..she died.

She was an eternal optimist. But everyone knows that optimists are the most miserable of all people. They always had a good opinion of everything, because that is the world and dream that they know other's yearn for. That is why they're happy and smiling, because they want to pretend that everything is all right. Even when it is so clearly not. They know that, but everyone depends on optimists to lift the mood, when all they do is sink deeper into depression themselves.

Hope. She saw hope in everything. Sometimes, that was a good thing. Sometimes, a bad thing. She saw hope in the kitsune boy, that he would become great and powerful. She saw hope in the young Uchiha, that one day, he would learn how to feel and love. She saw hope in every situation, even in the dark days when he left. Even when there was no more hope left to see.

She loved him like a brother. She pretended to be happy afterward, always hoping that he would turn around and come back to the village. But alas, she knew that all her love, happiness, and hope was in vain. He wasn't coming back.

At least not in her lifetime.

Her life was desperately short. Only 22 years old, and she didn't exist anymore. The Heavens had opened up their gates to welcome their long-lost angel. The earth wasn't ready for such a person yet, and they never would be.

But she knew something else during her last days.

She knew that she would be mourned, remembered, and then…forgotten. Just like everyone else. She didn't mind, after all, everyone had to be forgotten at some point. That was the way of the world, to live, die and be forgotten.

But she did everything in her power to prevent the first one.

An eternal optimist, she was grieving every day of her life. She knew what Hell was like already, and she didn't want anyone else to suffer like she did. She wanted no tears shed over her dead body because it had been inevitable.

Everyone dies at some point. She just died sooner than everyone else did.

But with her death, she wished to bring hope to her village. Hope that he would come back, even for just a little bit to see her one last time.

This was the last wish if Hyuuga Hinata, age 22, ninja status: Jounin.

Sometimes…the ending **is** the beginning…

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Like it? Hate it? Tell me!!! AND DON'T JUST FAVE IT OR PUT IT ON YOUR ALERT, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!!!!

….

Yeah…I'm done now. XD

moonlight haku

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	2. Scars to the Heart

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Sry for the lack of update, guys! I didn't really know how to continue(pathetic) and it didn't seem like a lot of people liked it…this chapter will be a bit weird….I don't know, lots of strange third person writing and weird explanations… 

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.  
**

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**Chapter 1:**  
Scars to the Heart

_"K-kiba-kun…I-I…"_

"_I know, I love you too, Hinata."_

_The pale skinned girl blushed and snuggled closer into Kiba's chest. He tipped her head up and kissed her lightly on the mouth. Her face flushed crimson and she looked down at her hands. Kiba chuckled, she was still too shy, but he didn't really care._

_He loved her the way she was. _

_He put one hand around her thin shoulder and looked out over the river. It was almost sunset and the sky was a brilliant mix of purple, blue and pink. The sun's fading rays shone through the translucent clouds as it slowly sank into the horizon. _

"_K-kiba-k-kun?"_

"_Yeah Hinata?"_

"_D-don't y-you j-just love th-the s-sunset?"_

"_Only when I'm with you…"_

_She gasped and blushed even harder. Her thin hand was wrapped around his neck and her face was toward the sinking sun. It shone onto her pale face like a bright lamp, and at that time, her face shone…like an angel's. _

"Kiba? Are you okay..?"

"Wha..Oh, hey Sakura-san."

His voice was still heavy and full of sadness and regret. Sakura looked away slowly and sat down beside him by the fresh grave, she couldn't even begin to comprehend what Kiba felt like, losing his fiancé…and then having to put on a brave face, because shinobi are not supposed to feel emotions.

Emotions make us weak and cloud our judgement.

They hinder our skills and divert our minds.

If a shinobi is to become truly excellent, they must show _no_ emotions.

Right?

No one was sure anymore.

Even though the best in their village were practically emotionless, the Konoha 12 had shown plenty of emotion throughout all their battles. And that's what made them strong. But what of the twenty-fifth rule of Shinobi Conduct? Surely they were made only to make us stronger, or was it to spare us the pain that would come with every assassination, every kill?

That may be so, but we are only human.

No matter how hard we try to deny it.

We are still humans.

Some might say that the village was getting too soft and weak for letting their best genin class to show such emotions. But for this generation…emotions made them strong.

Even when they face a terrible loss.

Such as the death of the Hyuuga Clan's short-lived leader.

Hyuuga Hinata.

Everyone mourned her loss, but not nearly as much as her fiancé, Kiba. It was rumored that they were to be wed in the coming winter, but she couldn't hold onto life for that long. So she passed away.

Much to the agony of her teammates and her friends.

The funeral had taken place instead of the wedding, in the dead of winter when the snowflakes fell and the ice froze the entire village. But even the ice couldn't stop the onslaught of emotions. They tore through the village, passing through each and every one of their hearts and ended at Kiba's broken heart.

They even went as far as the hot desert. 

To one boy, with blond hair and bright blue eyes. His name, was Naruto Uzimaki, one of the former Konoha 12, now the Konoha 10. He had left. Betrayed them all. Now, he was feeling the punishment. He didn't get to see his friend one more time, to ask for everyone's forgiveness and maybe, just maybe, try to tell them the real reason that he left.

It was not his choice to leave them.

It was _necessary_ if they were to keep their very lives.

But still, he was utterly devastated that he would never get to see her again. He was convinced that it was his fault. Maybe it was, but who's to say?

* * *

The gentle spring wind blew over the forest of Konoha, rustling their new leaves and adorning the marble grave with new buds and blossoms. The winter was over, but her death was still a fresh wound in everyone's hearts. Slowly, one rough and scarred hand traced the outline of the words on the tombstone. 

_Hyuuga Hinata_

_Age, 22_

_Beloved daughter and sister. _

_May her spirit be free and fly like the wind…_

Tears started to drip onto the ground, and the sound of sobbing started to drown out the gentle rustling of spring. The chocolate haired man wiped his overflowing eyes onto the sleeve of his jacket. He looked at the grave affectionately, and started to clear away the leaves and dirt with a skilled and practiced hand.

"The cherry blossoms are pretty this year, Hinata…I wish you could've see them…"

A sad smile appeared on his face, tears still dripping down uncontrollably. He cleared away the rubble and placed a bundle of lavenders and roses down onto the grave. He placed a letter underneath the stems and walked away, tears still flowing from his eyes.

"Ohayou, Kiba. Visiting the grave again?" Sakura waved to Kiba as he passed the hospital.

"Hai…I really miss her…"

Sakura smiled again, wishing that she could heal his broken heart and stitch up his cracked spirit. Medicine can only do so much. Sometimes, the wounds to the heart can never heal, but they can leave an eternal scar. He needed Hinata, but now that she was gone, he would have to find some way to heal his soul again.

Sighing, the pink-haired medic walked into the hospital to begin her twenty-hour shift.

* * *

A figure jumped out of the trees and toward the grave, it was a young man, maybe in his early twenties or late teens. He stopped in front of the grave and whispered some words while tucking a pale piece of paper into the bundle of flowers. He traced the words engraved on the marble surface slowly and then dashed away, leaving a only a few tears on the ground behind him…

* * *

"Mommy, where's Auntie Hinata?" 

Little Ren was nagging her mom for her favorite aunt. TenTen closed her eyes wearily, every time her daughter spoke that name, her heart ached. Ren was only four, too young to understand that her beloved 'auntie' was dead. TenTen longed to cry, but she had to keep a straight face in front of her child, lest she frighten her.

"Auntie Hinata…she went on a long trip, Ren dear…"

The girl's pale lavender eyes looked confusingly at her mother. Kami…those eyes….they just reminded her more and more of her departed friend. A tear almost made it's way down TenTen's cheek, but she held back, trying to be strong for her child.

"Well, when's she coming back?"

"Not for a long, long time Ren…not for a long time."

The girl looked like she was about to cry, like she was about to spill the tears that TenTen had been holding in for so long…she pouted miserably and asked, " Why? Why isn't Auntie Hinata coming back? Doesn't she love me anymore?"

TenTen sighed, "Of course she loves you, Ren. Don't ever think that she would stop loving you just because she isn't coming back, okay?"

"Hai, okaa-san…"

"Now..come here, give your okaa-san a hug.."

Little Ren ran over to her mother and fell into her warm arms. Sniffling, TenTen stroked her daughter's dark brown hair and those tears finally fell…

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_**To Be Continued…**_

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Shorter chapters are good, right? At least that means that I'll probably update more.

Maybe. PLZ REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK.

(shorter chapters, or longer ones.)

moonlight haku

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	3. Past Revealed

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GOMEN NASAI FOR THE LATE UPDATE!!!! I was just really uninspired…and a plot bunny for a new **SasuHina **fic just bit me. I was tempted to put this on hold, but I decided that I'd finish it as soon as I can. And I'll be updating waaayy slower once school starts (in 4 days) because my evil violin teacher makes me play **3 hours **of violin every day. So I have absolutely no time to fit typing and doing hw on weekdays. Sry guys.

**Disclaimer: Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto**

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**Chapter 2:**  
Past Revealed_  
_

_Hinata-_

_I'm really sorry that I didn't make it in time to see you one last time. I hope that maybe you'll forgive me…I really tried, but he just wouldn't let me come. I'm so sorry. If I knew that this was going to happen, then I wouldn't have left. But I know that that would probably be a lie…I had to leave. It's for a reason that you might not understand. But I'll explain it for you anyway, kami, I hope someone will read this and really understand._

_It's simple, but it's yet, really very hard…_

_I think that by now, you are familiar with the legend of the Kyuubi, the nine-tailed demon that was later sealed into a newborn baby. The Yondaime Hokage gave his life to save the villagers and sealed it within his own son. His son, was me. I grew up without knowing who I was or why everyone hated me, only that I was alone. Then Iruka-sensei came and became sort of like a father to me. Later, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi-sensei came and they became my family. After the Chunnin exams, Ero-Sennin, AKA, Jiraiya, taught me how to control the demon's chakra within me. _

_What they didn't tell me was what would happen if I ever ripped off the seal in myself. _

_When I retrieved Sasuke, I knew that he was only looking to die and that kind of person is very hard to defeat. They care nothing for their own life anymore. But I just want you to know, it's not his fault. It's not anyone's but mine. When I was fighting him, the seal was ripped off in my attempt to defeat Sasuke. Just as he promised, the Kyuubi gave me all his power. _

_But only for a little while. _

_Then I could feel that the Kyuubi was slowly overtaking me. Once the seal as taken off, instead of the demon fox being set free, it was still trapped in my body, giving me unimaginable power, and immortality. The only bad side is, I can't control myself. There's no warning, nothing. It just suddenly controls me and I can't even fight back. I almost destroyed a whole village, Hinata!_

_Then this man came to me, he said that his name was Mamoru or something. He said that he could reseal the demon inside of me without killing himself. I didn't know his true intentions at that time, but he asked me to do a favor for him if he helped me reseal it. Being the idiot I was, I accepted. It worked. He resealed the Kyuubi, but at a terrible price._

_He killed his own daughter._

_It turns out the favor was that he wanted my help to take his revenge against the Leaf Village. I declined, but he had me in his grasp already. It turns out that the seal on the Kyuubi was a new one, one that could be controlled only by the sealer. Which was him. I knew that if he released the seal, I would probably annihilate everyone I cared about. I had to stay with him. Maybe one day, I could find a way to thwart his plans before it's too late. _

_Everything else, you can find out from Sasuke. This will be the last time that I'll ever communicate with you, Hinata, and I hope that it wasn't completely useless. _

_Just don't come looking for me. I'll come to you._

_-Naruto Uzimaki_

Sakura looked at the letter in her hands in shock. She couldn't believe what the words were telling her, after all that time…the truth was finally in her own, gloved hands. The letter was found at Hinata's grave and Kiba had brought it to her after reading it on his own. It was clearly Naruto's semi-legible chicken scratch, but she just didn't want to believe it. She had an urge to go and pummel Sasuke all of the sudden, but then it would be against Naruto's wishes.

But since when had she ever followed Naruto's wishes before?

She ripped of her white lab coat and flew out the door without a greeting or farewell to anyone. Her destination? The abandoned Uchiha village. She ran into the streets lined with deteriorating houses, making small cracks on the ground with each of her footsteps. She reached a larger complex and opened the door. It wasn't the first time that she had been here before.

"Sasuke!" She yelled throughout the house, not caring that she was almost screaming.

"What do you want?" A pale figure strode in, his skin was covered with a sheen of sweat that told her that he must've been training when she came.

"Look. At this, " she shoved the crisp letter at him.

He took it and scanned the words. It was no surprise to her that his face showed no emotion whatsoever. After a few seconds, he folded the paper and glared at her venomously.

"So you came for the rest of the story?"

"Yes."

"It's very long."

"I have time."

"Fine. Sit down on the couch, this is going to take a while."

She glanced at him suspiciously and sat down onto the soft couch in the middle of the room. HE sat down opposite from her and activated his Sharingan. She flinched a little at the rotating dots.

"What are you doing?" She hissed.

"It's easier to just show it to you. Now relax."

She obliged and suddenly, she felt herself collapse onto the soft cushions behind her. She opened her eyes sleepily, to find herself floating in darkness.

_'Sasuke? Hello? Where am I?'_

'_In your consciousness. Just observe.'_

A floating Sasuke appeared beside her. He waved his hand and she was suddenly transported to a garden. A young woman with dark, forest green hair was humming as she watered the plants and herbs in front of her. The tune she hummed was sad, with a tinge of angst in the melody. A figure opened the door and came outside. It was Sasuke.

"H-hello…Sasuke-k-kun…"

"I told you already. No formalities, " he glared at her and muttered under his breath, " I hate formalities…"

"Oh…ok…"

The woman looked down and resumed humming the sad tune while watering the flowers. Sasuke passed by, not even glancing at her on his way out.

Suddenly, everything became blurry and things started to whirl around. Sakura's eyes were wide, _' What's happening?'_

'_Time changes. It'll take too long to show you everything.'_

'_Ano..Sasuke?'_

'_What?'_

'_Who was she?'_

'_Just..an old friend…'_

Sakura looked over at the pale skinned man curiously, she knew that this girl was probably much more to him than just 'an old friend.' He glared at her when he caught her gaze on him, and Sakura turned away, frightened. He gestured toward them again and mouthed 'look'.

It looked like it was autumn and the woman looked a bit older. She was a bit taller and her hair was cut short just above her shoulders. She was walking on a dirt path leading through a busy street with a certain pale-skinned man, Sasuke.

"Sasuke, how long do you plan to stay? You must have people who worry about you…" She fidgeted with her hands while she looked down at the ground.

"No…I belong no where…as for how long I will stay…I can leave now if you want…"

"No! That not what I meant…er..I mean…" she blushed as she tried to clarify her answer. Sasuke looked over at her and smirked. He loved making her blush and stutter. She looked up at him, trying to find what his true thoughts were. He smiled and tipped her chin up and kissed her.

Sakura gasped as everything went blurry again. She looked at Sasuke for some answer.

'_You weren't supposed to see that..'_ he hissed at her.

'_Fine. It's not the end of the world or anything.'_

'_Hn.'_

It was winter, but the sun was still bright and shining even though there were sprinkles of snow here or there. She saw Sasuke standing in a middle of the field, training and wiping the sweat from his forehead. Suddenly, his head jerked to the side as a rare swirl of wind passed by and a distant cry was heard.

He dashed toward the town, only to find that same green-haired woman lying in a puddle of blood with paramedics and doctors surrounding her. His face paled and he tied to run in, but some doctors who pushed him out prevented him.

Sakura gasped. The scene reminded her of when Hinata was sick. _'Hinata…'_ her eyes started to grow wet at the thought of her lost friend. The scene went blurry again and she saw herself in the middle of a field. Apparently, Naruto and Sasuke were in the middle of a fierce battle.

Naruto was panting with exhaustion while Sasuke just looked his old, calm stoic self. The blond closed his eyes and orange chakra started to surround him. Sakura gasped, she knew what he was going to do. In a flash, she found herself in a dark room in front of a humongous cage. There was pair of dark, evil eyes looking at her…no…Naruto. He was confronting whatever was in there, it was telling him to rip it off, to rip off the seal so he could gain all of his untapped power. Naruto reached for it, but was stopped by a pale hand. The hand, of a certain Sasuke Uchiha.

"So this is what's in you, eh?"

"Get out, Sasuke-teme."

"Why? So you can use this demon and take me back to your 'home'?" Sasuke spat this out bitterly.

"It's your home too."

"No it's not. It never will be."

"You are NOT getting away…I promised Sakura-chan that I would bring you home…and I NEVER go back on my word!!"

In one fluid motion, he ripped off the seal and the whole place started to rumble. Sasuke's eyes were glaring at him, " You BAKA! DO you know what you've done?!"

He disappeared and Sakura found herself on the couch in Sasuke's house again.

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And yeah…PLZ REVIEW!!! REVIEWFASTER UPDATE!!! I really mean it this time. Please tell me your opinion on this fic, I'm seriously trying my best here! Ja ne! 

moonlight haku

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	4. The Fight Within

**Author's Note: **Hehehe…for the two people that are still reading this, sorry I haven't updated. I guess I just totally forgot about this fic. So I reward you for waiting….with a regular-length chapter! XD

**Disclaimer:**Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto

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**Chapter 3: ****The Fight Within**

Sakura trembled a bit after she left the eerie Uchiha compound. The _things_ that Sasuke could do with his Sharingan were frightening. Although she had studied into bloodlines extensively, there were still many parts of the Sharingan hidden from her, partly because of the lack of test subjects. Sometimes, she wished that the world just didn't have bloodlines or kekkei genkai; just plain ordinary ninja such as her. That would make the world much simpler and a much happier place.

But Sakura knew that this was the world she lived in, and there was nothing a wish could do to change it. She sighed and ran along to the apartment that she and Kakashi shared.

"We are GOING! You can't possibly think to stop us, Hokage-sama!"

"It's not safe! Besides, there is no telling if that letter was the real thing or not! I will not approve of the village's best ninja going on a useless mission!"

"Naruto is our friend! Friends help each other in time of need. He needs help, NOW!"

"Stop acting like an impertinent child! I will not tolerate this kind of childish behavior!"

"You don't understand, Hokage-sama! He means a lot to me, he means a lot to all of us! We were his friends!!"

Sakura stood face to face with her former shishou, face contorted with rage and anguish. Why couldn't she _understand_? Naruto was literally crying out for help, but she couldn't do anything. Wasn't it enough that Hinata had to die?! Now she was going to lose Naruto as well?!!

"You don't understand the meaning of friendship!!", Sakura spat out, "The only thing you know is turning your back on your friends and those who were important to you! How could someone like you possibly understand??!!"

_Slap_

Tears of frustration started to roll down Sakura's cheek. She glared at the blonde-haired woman with angry eyes, " You hit me! You NEVER hit me before!!"

She ran out of the room, crying and slamming the door behind her. The rest of the ninja stared after her uncomfortably; they had never seen Sakura burst out like that before. Kakashi coughed slightly to break the eerie silence that had followed.

"She'll be fine," he said quietly, reassuring everyone.

They all turned back silently, wondering what to do next. Tsunade turned around and waved her hand at them, "You're dismissed. Get out. NOW!!"

They all stared at her shaking shoulders and then walked out the door slowly.

* * *

_Clack_

"It's from Hokage-sama," Kakashi uselessly informed his disheveled wife. Her eyes were bloodshot from crying all night and the place where Tsunade had hit her was turning an ugly blue-black color. She looked at the mission scroll lying limply in her hands.

"You know," he started again, "She must've been really pissed off at you, I've only seen her hit people twice. "

When she didn't respond, he sighed and patted her on the head before leaving. Sakura stirred the metal spoon around in her coffee, not bothering to open the mission scroll in front of her. She knew what it contained; Tsunade had let her go and search for Naruto. Needless to say, she felt guilty for yelling at her shishou. Tsunade had suffered too; she lost her little brother and the love of her life at a young age. Then to top it off, Orochimaru, who was probably a good friend, left and betrayed the village.

She gazed in the mirror as she brushed her teeth. Her rose colored hair was wet and disheveled from the rain and a sleepless night. There were dark circles under her eyes, as if proclaiming to the world that she was tired and weary.

After dressing properly in her ninja attire, she set off for the Hokage's office. To her surprise, she found only Sasuke standing in the office. The Godaime was staring at her with narrowed eyes, and then started explaining their mission.

"From now on, you two will have no more duties concerning this village. Before your mission is done, you are exempt from all matters concerning this place. Until you have retrieved Naruto and have confirmed that he is safe enough to live within the confines, you may not come back. No one knows how long your mission may be except for you. Upon return, you two will be promoted rank depending on the success of your mission. Good luck."

At her direction, two ninja appeared out of the shadows and handed them both two packs of scrolls and weaponry. Tsunade's icy blue eyes flickered for a second before saying, "You are dismissed. I send with you the well wishes of the village. "

Sakura looked at Sasuke apprehensively and gasped. In his eyes was the same flame that she had seen years before in Naruto's. Now the roles were reversed, Naruto was gone, but somehow, Sakura knew that they would get him back.

No matter what the cost may be.

* * *

"They're coming for you."

"Liar."

"Don't believe me if you will, but I might be telling the truth this time."

"How would you know?"

"I have a spy in your old, forsaken village. Someone you know," a cruel smile appeared on the man's face. Naruto's face paled, and his eyes grew wide," you mean Keiko?!," then he rethought his guess, "but she's not skilled enough to spy…unless…"

"Yes, you're entirely right," a cruel smile appeared on the old man's face. "I infused her with the two-tailed demon's chakra. Even though it was captured by Akatsuki, I managed to get hold of it and the 'Keiko' that you know is nothing but a body made out of pure demon chakra that was suppressed into a human container. Ingenious…isn't it, Naruto-kun?"

' _No wonder I didn't detect anything strange about her…' _Naruto thought, _'This old bastard figured out how to make another kind of Jinchuriki. But why didn't the whole village stop him? Unless…that entire thing was just a lie…."_

* * *

Inside the former Uzumaki household, Keiko was cleaning the sofa.

An odd tone of disconnected notes hung in the air as she wiped the dust and lint of the orange couch. She was just about to finish when her green eyes changed. They took on a dull hue and the tune disappeared from her lips. Chakra started bursting out from her body and her skin started to fade as the massive, suppressed chakra burst out, ripping through the very foundation of the house and the surrounding houses.

By the time a fire-rescue squad came around, there was only a pile of rubble and in the very middle, a half-decayed body of a dead woman.

* * *

Sakura snapped her back to the village and her jumps stopped on a thick, moss-covered tree branch.

"Didn't you just feel that?"

"Yes," Sasuke's voice appeared right behind her.

"Do you think that it was Naruto's?"

"No," Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed, "It wasn't his, Sakura. You should know that."

"I know…but…I just thought…," a single tear slid down Sakura's cheek.

For once, Sasuke didn't say anything, but his mind was racing. It was definitely not Naruto's demon chakra, but it was demonic. But when Pein went down, the Akatsuki stronghold disappeared off the face of the earth. When the villages went to scout it out, looking for any remainder of demon chakra, they had found it gone, dissipated in the atmosphere.

"Let's go, Sakura."

"Do you think we should go back and take a look?" Sakura's voice sounded worried.

"No, we've already been traveling for half a day. Besides, the village is none of our concern anymore until our mission is finished."

"But what if—never mind. You're right. Let's go," Sakura sighed miserably. For a second, there had been a tiny sliver of hope that Naruto had found some way back to them. He wasn't stupid—he just never took the time to think, maybe, just maybe he had gotten away. And then they wouldn't have to leave Konoha to save him.

"Are we going or not?"

She looked at Sasuke's burning eyes and nodded slowly. What was he thinking behind those dark black eyes of his? They were so similar to Naruto's yet so different. Naruto's determined, blue eyes made her feel warm and safe. Like he would defend her and protect her no matter what would happen.

But Sasuke…those eyes were so dark and forlorn. It looked like it held all the pain the world in two simple drops of black blood. But this, Sakura reminded herself, this is why we're coming to save you, Naruto. You were our teammate, a forever part of Team 7. Nothing will change that.

Nothing.

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**Author's Note: **I congratulate you and thank you fervently at the same time for reading this chapter! I'm trying to fix this story and make it less confusing for 1984729 people that told me it was. I'll be updating on regular basis from now on. Please review!

moonlight haku


	5. DISCONTINUATION

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**Author's Note: **I'm actually very, very sorry…but I cannot go on with this fanfiction. I will leave this here, but there's an extremely slim chance that I'll ever update again. I really tried to think up more ideas and such, but I realized that I would never get around to putting it on paper (or the computer screen). This just started as a crazy rambling of an overconfident and slightly crazy seventh-grader…and I admit, it was very confusing. I never wanted to discontinue a story, or disappoint anyone— my inspirations for this fic has all but extinguished. Looking back on this story, I'm extremely thankful to those who actually supported me since my writing was so…juvenile.

I would appreciate it if you read some of my current works, but I'm not forcing you. Your support gave me courage to keep writing, so you're very important to me. Thank you for taking you time to read this…

-moonhaku

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